Wednesday, 24 August 2011

Black Bread

Black Bread is an interesting bread made with sourdough and old bread soaked in boiling water and coffee grounds. The sourdough gives it a bit of a tang and the coffee grounds provide the deep coloring. I didn’t have any new old bread (meaning only a few days old) so I used some rye bread that I cut into cubes and froze a few months back. I do believe it qualified as old bread.

Black Bread is the third bread on the list for the Mellow Bakers this month. It is another one of those breads that I was hesitant to make. It didn’t appeal to me at first, but I was curious to find out how ground coffee would taste in bread. So I decided to give it a try. It also seemed like a good way to use some of the old bread I had stashed in the freezer. I only made one loaf so I adjusted the formula accordingly.

Bread Method:

Prepare the sourdough and let it ripen for 14 to 16 hours.

Slice the old bread, put it on a baking sheet and bake it until it is a deep, dark brown. Try not to burn it because it will give it a bitter taste. Put the rebaked old bread in a large bowl and pour the hot water over it. Add the ground coffee and oil and stir thoroughly with a spoon until the coffee is dissolved and the bread is completely moistened. Cover with a lid or plastic. It’s best to make the bread soaker at the same time as you prepare the sourdough and to let it stand at room temperature until it’s time to mix the dough.

Add the ingredients to the mixing bowl. Mix the dough for 3 minutes on first speed, then about 3 minutes on second. The high gluten flour will give the dough a perceptible, but not overly strong, gluten development. The desired dough temperature is 80˚ F.

Let the dough bulk ferment for 30 to 45 minutes.

Shape the dough into a round or oblong shape.

Final fermentation should take about 50 to 60 minutes at 80˚ F.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees with a baking stone on the center rack and a steam pan underneath. Bake the loaf for about 15 minutes, then lower the oven temperature to 425 degrees and bake for 30 to 35 minutes longer.

I tried a slice and I actually liked it. The rebaked old bread adds a toasty flavor when soaked and mixed into the new dough. And, the ground coffee gives the bread a bit of a bite as well. The resulting bread is very dark but without the sweetness that you would get from using molasses.

I gave the rest of the loaf to my friend from Romania. He loves dark breads and it was his birthday so I thought it was only fitting that he should have it. Of course I had to try it first to make sure it tasted okay.

He enjoyed the bread with tomatoes. He said it was just the right combination. He also said he couldn’t taste the coffee, but that it kept him up late at night. Not sure if he was just kidding me about that. He said the rye flavor is what comes through the most with a hit of sourdough.

I just might have to make this one again. Next time I might try using some old French bread instead of rye.